Batyrkhan Shukenov is a well established singer and saxophone player in Almaty, Kazakhstan (pop. 1.4 million). LessLoss began communication with Mr. Shukenov in September 2011, and after some discussion about his studio and ultimate needs, it was decided to go ahead with an entire power system overhaul. By mid-September, the number of needed cables was finalized and tallied and the order was placed. By October 10th, everything was delivered to the studio in Almaty. In the following weeks, due to the necessitation of allocating time for an entire system shut-down, the all-LessLoss power system was installed and up and running.

Around then, we received our first email from Batyrkhan Shukenov:
"We've recorded vocal again and again. What happened to us in terms of sound quality has gone so far as to change our perception of sound altogether. I can't help it not to repeat it once more: I am truly satisfied."

How long have you had the studio? Around 7 years ago I began thinking of putting together a studio of very high caliber. To me, the whole idea represents rather a creative lab not only for musicians, but for those whose ideas of bringing an uncompromising atmosphere of creativity, along with a professional approach, into life, was a crucial necessity.

How did you find out about the importance of power for sound quality? My first experience of working in a professional studio goes back to the year 1992 when I had the privilege of meeting the great Greg Walsh in his private studio in one of London's suburbs. This man is well known, working with such artists as Pavarotti, Pink Floyd, Chicago, Tina Turner, A-Studio (Kazakhstan), among others. In other words, meeting Mr. Greg Walsh was a turning point of my existing ideas about working in a studio, as well as for the importance of sound and what sound IS.

What sort of expectations did you have with the power upgrade? Beauty knows no boundaries. The search is a necessary constant for any artist, a "must-have component." Every time one tries to put a session together, or to record a tune, as a performer or artist or sound engineer - one may expect only best result - no artificial artifacts allowed. Stating it differently - one wants the kind of experience that, afterwords, may provide the best experience when mixing individual lines and components together.

How did you like the consultations we carried out? Without a doubt – very much so. Changing the whole set of power cables, changing some components, switching lines, and much more valuable advice from Mr. Motek has completely changed the quality of the sound with no comparison of what it was like before. The young, striving and fearless sound engineer Nazir Turganbaev, who works in the studio, admits that he greatly enjoys the new sound and all the changes that came along with it. As a result of all the recent changes, after experiencing many different recording sessions in many different places and studios, I can proudly state that the sound quality and recording process in our newly equipped studio has brought us up to a totally different level. This sort of experience brought volume and broadness into the sound. In addition to profound and deep, crispy and yet dramatically audible details, one with a keen ear would be able to hear different nuances in things such as delay and reverb. It made the process of mixing the various ingredients of the record a lot more comfortable and a more pleasant experience.

More about the studio: who records there? Only yourself? The current studio location is in an apartment building in Almaty, KZ. It is in our future plans to move it out into a place that will eventually resemble a professional studio space with all the required dimensions, etc. In the meantime we did our best to attempt to minimize all undesirable acoustical flaws of the existing space. Those who record there include my friends, my colleagues, and myself. As a non-commercial unit, this studio was meant to be the place for artists of all genres to gather, to share and express ideas on a highest level.




What other instruments do you record there? Alto sax, soprano sax, acoustical and el. guitars, Rhodes piano, voice, and Kazakh folk instruments.

Who works there? Only yourself? Do you have recording engineer colleagues? Nazir Turganbaev is the sound engineer. He's been working with me for the last 7 years.

How big are the recording rooms? The main and sound room aren't that big. Although, they are spacious enough to serve the purpose, for now.

Was the upgrade successful? I'm genuinely happy. I honestly couldn't say that before this effective upgrade took place. It's hard to imagine, nearly impossible to restore in my mind, the conditions and equipment we were dealing with all these years. I'm so glad those days are gone. With this new power upgrade, and with the experience and advice from Mr. Motek, we now face brand new possibilities to explore.

It is a great pleasure serving both pro-audio and audiophile users seeking the best possible sound from their equipment. We look forward to implementing more large projects such as this and welcome your inquiries. Thank you for your interest in our high performance solutions!


Managing Director
LessLoss Audio